Hyderabad didn’t need a store to discover the label Jaykirti. It had already found it in the hushed elegance of hand block prints, the quiet comfort of pure cottons, and the kind of craftsmanship that doesn’t announce itself but stays with you. Founder Rani Jaykirti Singh had been building that connection for years through exhibitions and loyal repeat customers, long before the label had a physical home in the city. More than two decades into her journey, she’s finally arrived in Hyderabad.
Over two decades ago, she began creating clothes that were, as she puts it, ‘an extension of my personality’ — unhurried, unembellished, and deeply rooted in craft. No advertising campaigns, no trend forecasts, no aggressive expansion plans. Just handcrafted cottons, hand block prints, and garments that, apparently, speak loudly enough for themselves. “I’ve never advertised or anything. The garments speak for themselves,” she says with a quiet certainty.
The Jaipur-based label has built a loyal following across India and abroad — not through noise, but through the kind of quiet word-of-mouth that only genuine quality can sustain. And Hyderabad, it turns out, had been listening for a while. “Whenever I’ve had an exhibition in Hyderabad, I’ve sold very well. People love the article and I already have a good clientele there who keep ordering online with us or through WhatsApp,” she shares. The new store, therefore, feels less like a business decision and more like a natural conclusion to a relationship already long in the making.
Part of what drew her to Hyderabad was something more practical than sentiment — the weather. “Hyderabad is a little warmer than the rest of the country, and I deal basically in cottons and hand block prints,” she explains. But it was her research that confirmed what she had sensed all along. She adds, “I realised you don’t really have a store like this here with pure cotton and hand block prints, most things are blended or screen printed.”
There is also, she believes, something about Hyderabad’s sensibility that mirrors her own. Having travelled extensively across India and abroad, Rani has developed a sharp eye for how different audiences relate to fashion. “North people are very bling. Whereas South Indians are subtle and they prefer quality over bling. Hyderabad people are very nice and they have rich taste,” she expresses.
At the heart of Jaykirti lies the ancient craft of block printing, and her relationship with it is one of deep, instinctive familiarity. Her colour choices, she admits, are driven by feeling rather than strategy. “Actually, I do what I like,” she says, laughing. The craft itself shapes many of those choices — block printing, she explains, demands lighter grounds. She adds, “You can’t really do it on dark fabrics. So it has to be white or very pastel shades.” What could be a constraint becomes, in her hands, a signature — soft, luminous, immediately recognisable. And when it comes to quality, there are no shortcuts. She highlights, “Every piece goes under me. I check and approve everything. We don’t compromise on quality.”
The label has evolved over the years — chiffon sarees, hand-painted collections, velvet jackets, embroidered capes, and winter layers have all found their way into Jaykirti’s offerings — but the evolution has always been gradual and seasonal rather than trend-driven. “We are not introducing completely new silhouettes. We just change prints, colours, and designs every season,” she points out.
For all her success, she describes herself with a refreshing lack of corporate ambition. “I am a very laid-back person (laughs), so I don’t really have a roadmap. Now my daughter has joined the business, so she definitely has a roadmap. We want to explore other parts of the country and maybe open more stores. We already export, so maybe expand that too,” she concludes.